FORBIDDEN PLANET (1956), Oversized Photo of 24-Sheet

finepostervault

This photo is a vintage silver gelatin, double weight matte finish photo of a 24 sheet poster for Forbidden Planet. It's the only proof that a 24sh ever existed. From a purely historical perspective, this photo thereby becomes the 24-sh. One could argue that, at least. I snagged it for a measly $109 including Buyer’s Premium.

But the crucial question: What do I write in the "Value of the Item" field?

I think most of the people who bid that day didn't realize what they had in front of them. They just saw something black and white, and Robby has to be colorful. :-) I haven't found anything similar anywhere. The thing is extremely rare, as far as my research goes—it's probably the only one of its kind. It's a classic archive photo, even with a handwritten archive signature in the bottom right of the image. There were always only very few of those. To get more insight into its historical and photographic context, I've reached out to institutions like the George Eastman Museum and asked for their assessment on studio practices from the 1950s. I'm wating for the answer.

What do you think of this haul?

finepostervault

I asked the AI Grok to color the photo according to the original colors. I find that very impressive.

HONDO

Now for sale on EBay is this Forbidden Planet 27'' x 58'' sized billboard poster replica with the posters original colours altered.

finepostervault

Hello Hondo! Thanks. That's cool, but it's not exactly proof of the existence of a 24sh poster. However, my photo is. That's more about film history. It would be interesting to find out what their basis for the print was. And check out the clouds in the bottom right over the mountains in the background. The motif on eBay differs from my photo. There are some other differences too. Mine is the photo of the original.

darolo

Your Forbidden Planet photo is an art still which the studios routinely printed for each poster size - one sheet and larger, as part of their suite of stills ( which ran into the hundreds). The one you have may be quite rare but doesn't prove that a copy of the poster still exists. It looks like an original from 1956. The Forbidden Planet pressbook would illustrate the same image which could sometimes differ slightly from the printed poster. The alphanumeric code at the bottom is unique to that movie and to that still. 
These stills are interesting but rarely fetch a lot of money, the most recent one I bought was for the 1939 Hound of the Baskervilles 3 sheet, bought for $25. The value of the poster itself is probably 25 grand.

finepostervault

Thank you, daroloe for your thoughtful clarification — I appreciate the distinction you’re making. You’re right that I expressed myself imprecisely.

What I meant to convey was not that this photograph proves the existence of a surviving 24-sheet, nor that it confirms widespread theatrical deployment. Rather, I see it as evidence that MGM had finalized and documented a 24-sheet layout for Forbidden Planet in 1956.

Given that this is a studio-issued silver gelatin still with a specific MGM alphanumeric code, it appears to be part of their formal publicity and archival system. My understanding is that studios typically did not produce format-specific poster art stills unless a finished mechanical or production-ready layout existed. In that sense, I interpret this as documentation of an actual 24-sheet design prepared for production — even if we cannot confirm how many were printed, distributed, or whether any survive today.

So to be precise: I’m not claiming proof of extant physical posters, but rather evidence of a completed and studio-recognized 24-sheet format for the title.

Bruce

You have a lack of knowledge here. 24-sheets were a standard size and were made for virtually EVERY movie from the mid-1910s to the 1970s. No "proof" is needed of their existence, but it it were, it would be the pressbook that provides said proof.

What you say would make more sense for some unusual poster, like a still showing a special advertising 40x60, which might not have been shown or mentioned in the pressbook.

I have auctioned tons of stills that show poster images, and since they are black and white, they rarely command much collecting interest.

What has done much better are stills showing actual theater fronts with posters displayed.

finepostervault

“You have a lack of knowledge here.”
Absolutely. And I can assure you, it’s been an expensive education.

I’m here to expand my knowledge. 🙂 That said, I would respectfully and cautiously disagree.

Not every production had the budget for large-scale billboard advertising. And in the specific case of Forbidden Planet, I haven’t been able to find any evidence that a 24-sheet was actually produced. That doesn’t mean one didn’t exist, of course. I’m perfectly willing to remain humble about that.

Was there a 24-sheet for Ed Wood’s Bride of the Monster? For Plan 9 from Outer Space? I don’t know. But I’m skeptical.

My point here is simply to properly contextualize this photograph within cinematic history — and, from my perspective, within the collecting world.

Bruce

Here is your proof.

Movies from major studios (like FP from MGM) always had 24 sheets. I agree with you that movies from low budget studios likely rarely had them.

If you had a still showing a 24 sheet from Bride of the Monster or Plan 9 from Outer Space that WOULD be a discovery.

finepostervault

Bruce,

I don’t disagree with your general point. If MGM routinely produced 24-sheets for their major releases, then statistically it is highly likely that Forbidden Planet had one as well. That makes sense from an industry-practice perspective.

My point is narrower and more documentary in nature.

General studio practice — even if historically accurate — is still inferential knowledge. It tells us what likely happened based on precedent. My photograph, however, is title-specific evidence that a 24-sheet layout for Forbidden Planet was finalized and documented within the studio workflow.

That does not prove printing, distribution, or survival. I am not claiming that. But it does constitute concrete evidence that such a billboard design existed at least at the production level.

So I would frame it this way:
Your statement explains why a 24-sheet was probable.
The still is evidence that a 24-sheet design for this specific film was actually prepared.

Those are two different categories of proof.

Bruce

I diagree with your idea that the still is better proof than the pressbook. I am not sure where you got that idea.

And oddly enough you picked one of the few classic horror 24 sheets that IS known to exist. Mega-collector Matt Schapiro (aka Mrs Miniver on eBay) has it.

finepostervault

Mega-collector Matt Schapiro (aka 'mrs.miniver' on eBay) supposedly has it—or at least had it back in 2011. But that's just an old forum thread and a text-based eBay listing with zero photos or visual proof. Prove it properly: Have you seen it yourself? Is there a photo of it? I haven't found anything, despite searching. Claims like this without evidence are nice, but they prove absolutely nothing—especially for a rarity like an original 24-sheet.

I want to point out that it's not about being right here for me. Primarily, it's about having fun with the topic. We shouldn't take all this so seriously, I think. :-)

Duke

Here is a 24 sheet I own this is a beautiful poster.

finepostervault

Wow

finepostervault

What means ""in Todd-AO"?

jayn_j

Todd-AO was a proprietary wide-screen format by the American Optical company.  Founded by Mike Todd.  Competed in the 50s with Vista vision and Cinemascope.

One reason that we collectors have low interest in 24 sheets is that they are pretty much undisplayable.  They are also quite rare for a couple of reasons.  First, they were fairly expensive for theater owners to purchase and display.  Second by their nature, once used they could not be recycled as they were pasted to billboards.
Smaller sizes were actually rented to theaters by the NSS and were expected to be returned at the end of the run.  Thus many entered the collector market in the mid 1970s when the NSS closed their regional warehouses and auctioned off their stock in pallette sized lots.

Bruce

Yes, Matt Schapiro does own it, along with the others from his eBay listing.